Local business

Right after some gleeful commentary from the strutting, scandal-plagued president of Xavier University, your host was quoted in an article today in the Cincinnati Enquirer on Pope Francis’s doctrine-shelving, 12,000-word essay on the Church’s pastoral concerns:

Rich Leonardi, a local businessman and a practicing Catholic, is afraid people might take that out of context. Leonardi is certain the church will be better off staying true to existing doctrine.

“Some of his words, and I do not think this was his intention, will be misinterpreted by those who oppose the church’s teachings,” Leonardi said. “Getting loose with doctrine leads to smaller communities. Churches that are growing demand more.”

And as if on cue, in a related post, Ron Kozar shares a local anecdotal scenario no doubt taking place throughout the Church in America this week and in coming months:

[A]t a certain Catholic high school attended by the children of a certain commenter on this blog, a young religion teacher ebulliently told her students today, after the bell had barely finished ringing for the start of class, that a welcome new era has just dawned in the Church, and that, with the Pope’s comments yesterday, the old, fuddy-duddy teachings about contraception, homosexuality, and all that were now officially going into that cupboard above the fridge, where we put the things that we don’t really use anymore.

Thank you Rich Leonardi and Richard Thomas for assuring me that I am not alone in thinking this is a nightmare. Pope Francis keeps making statements in a new papal language: double-speak, which is confusing for everyone…. at best!

Just saw Fr. Morris on FOX and he was gushing about how this Holy Father is merely puting the mercy of Jesus first. Then Fr. Morris read a letter from his sister who married her girlfriend (he said he did not approve) and she is so moved and happy at this Holy Father’s understanding of the love of Jesus for her in her life. Fr. Morris was thrilled! Said Pope Francis reached her with this message when all this time Fr. Morris could not. HUH??? She’s still “married”!

Pope Francis in just six months has the entire world confused about Catholic teaching as he gives the MSM and the enemies of Holy Mother Church all the fodder they need to blast the true church. And I can’t believe he doesn’t recognize why the Church is losing followers, that the reasons are exactly opposite of what he told media!

I hope and pray that Pope Francis will start to sit (kneel) quietly, preferably in Adoration, and back off his constant public statements and become a thoughtful, deliberative shepherd. Personally, that’s what I look for in my popes, not scurrying and currying and doublespeak. He says the Church has never been in better shape? Oh my. Enough from me. I, too, need to read everything, digest it, and pray, pray, pray, because at first blush, I find all this terrifying. +JMJ

I’m reading the interview now, after skimming it. I think it’s brilliant and I think he’s a great man… I imagine he might say, if anyone asked him why he wasn’t more careful with his words, that his business is to say things and the listener/reader’s business is to pay attention. If people insist on hearing what they want to hear, that’s their problem. But yes, it does mean a lot of mess to clean up. See Marc Barnes’s great (but rude) response to NARAL’s sadly predictable and wrong response (a Facebook meme that gives the impression that Pope Francis said abortion is A-OK):http://www.patheos.com/blogs/badcatholic/2013/09/dear-naral.html

In six months, this “brilliant” man has managed to generate widespread confusion about the Church’s teaching on virtually every controversial topic in the public square. His business is to serve Christ by protecting the deposit of faith and his flock by preaching the Gospel faithfully. Saying “things” doesn’t quote capture it.

I’m glad that I read the whole interview–it gave me a whole new view. Notice the words only & all in his sentence about the three explosive issues and the pope’s plea to see Christ in every person as an overall context. Today after the misinterpretation by NARAL, he included seeing Christ in the unborn child.
I can continue being very pro-life and continue opposing the immorality of homosexuality.

“I can continue being very pro-life and continue opposing the immorality of homosexuality.”

Surely there was no question in your mind.

Look, if the Pope does not understand his writings, utterances, musings and actions will be bent to achieve any particular agenda he lacks the sophistication required in the modern era. He may see his role as primarily shepherd, that is nice, the wolves will tear him to pieces, then go for the sheep. Popes guard the Church; theologians muse about life – and often get it wrong. A shepherd is sometimes required to take on the wolves in mortal combat. If the shepherd is defeated – well – you know what happens to the sheep.

I,too, wish that the Pope would be much clearer and Thomistic in what he says. I also think that church leaders have not consistently taught about these issues over the past forty years, but then I know that according to Bella Dodd, the Communist lawyer whose job was to infiltrate Catholic seminaries in the US, claimed that she succeeded in getting 1100 Communists and/or homosexuals into the seminaries in the early 1930s and they have had all this time to rise to positions of authority. Other countries have had their infiltrators also. How we need to pray!